Accion MfB Declares N6.17bn Gross Earnings for 2023FY

Sunday Ehigiator

Accion Microfinance Bank (MfB) has announced a Gross Earnings of N6.17 billion for the year ended December 31, 2023 compared to N6.96 billion recorded in 2022.

The bank also announced a Profit Before Tax of N503.6 million, a decline from the N1.55 billion recorded in 2022.

Similarly, the bank’s deposits and loan portfolio slightly declined to N4.30 billion and N11.69 billion, respectively as against the N4.54 billion and N11.69 billion apiece recorded by the bank in 2022.

The bank’s return on equity was placed at 6.91 per cent, with a loan loss provision of 73.6 per cent.

The bank said it recorded growth in unique saver numbers and accounts, with a 5.6 per cent and 26.2 per cent increase, respectively.

Commenting on the report, the Chairman of the Board of Directors, Christian Ruehmer noted that, “Nigeria’s economy weakened in 2023 as macroeconomic indices worsened. This was demonstrated by several factors, including slower GDP growth, rising inflation, a severe lack of foreign exchange, increasing debt, instability of the Naira, reduced foreign portfolio investments, and foreign direct investments.

“The effects of the CBN naira redesign at the end of 2022 and the twin policy reforms of removal of PMS subsidies and exchange rate unification of the current government led to increasing inflation and devaluation of the Naira. These reduced disposable incomes for consumers lowered the aggregate demand in the economy and slowed down business activities.

“Even though the country has been dealing with growing price levels since 2022, government policy reforms exacerbated inflation pressures. The painful but necessary reforms pushed more and negatively impacted Nigerians significantly, putting a strain on food prices, with headline and food inflation closing at 28.92 per cent and 33.93 per cent, respectively, as of December 2023.”

He added, “In reaction to the spike in inflation, the CBN tightened financial conditions by hiking the MPR four times, from 16.5 per cent in 2022 to 18.75 per cent in 2023, while also mopping up liquidity in the open market and enabling long-term bill rates to climb.

“However, inflation yielded little and remained stubbornly high despite the apex bank’s rate hikes, providing strong support for the theory that Nigeria’s inflation is inelastic mainly to monetary policy instruments, as inflation is primarily supply-side driven due to higher production costs. On the fiscal side, the nation’s anticipated revenue from oil averaged 1.45 million barrels per day in 2023, up from 1.38 million barrels per day in 2022 but still below the 1.74 million barrels per day OPEC limit and the 1.69 million barrels per day budget forecast for 2023.

“With the harsh economic challenges, gross earnings dropped marginally to N6.17 billion (N6.96bn in 2022) with PBT at N503.6 million (N1.55bn in 2022). Deposits declined slightly to N4.30 billion (N4.54bn in 2022), and the loan portfolio to N11.69 billion (N12.44bn in 2022).”

Speaking on the outlook for the year 2024, he said the bank’s digital transformation journey has empowered businesses and communities, setting industry benchmarks for customer experience, operational speed, and market growth.